Help with Middle Name and Additional Spellings

Updated on May 14, 2009
A.M. asks from Mount Washington, KY
26 answers

I am due in 3 weeks, and we are not sure what we are having. We have our girl name picked out just fine, it is the boy we are having so much trouble with. This week (my husband keeps changing his mind), if we have a little boy, his name is going to be Levi. I need some help coming up with a middle name and wanted to know some suggestions for other ways to spell Levi. Our daughters name is Tatum, so I like uncommon names, plus I am a teacher, and that can ruin a lot of names for you =)

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K.P.

answers from Memphis on

I would not do an alternative spelling for Levi. Even my name (K./Katherine) I get sick of spelling everywhere, because when given over the phone, people don't know if it's spelled with a C or a K, or if it's K., Kathie, Kathi, Kathee, Katherine, Katherin, Kathryn, Katheryn, Katheryne, etc. It's much easier to have a name without an alternate spelling!!

2 moms found this helpful
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M.R.

answers from Nashville on

An alternate spelling could be Levy. I like the names Foxx, Hutcheson, & Clark to go with it. Best of luck to you!

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A.J.

answers from Knoxville on

Congradulations A.. The only name that came to mind for me was Levi Cooper. Hope you have an easy labor and a very healthy baby.

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G.S.

answers from Goldsboro on

As soon as I read your post the name Levi James to my mind. I don't know anyone with this name but it just seemed to go together!! I know what you mean about unusual names...my son is Devan and my daughter is Reese. Good luck!!

1 mom found this helpful
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A.T.

answers from Wilmington on

We had a hard time with a boys name as well. Too much name association! Go with the traditional spelling. Also I would go with a name that isn't quite as unusual for a middle name just in case when your son gets older he isn't wild about the name Levi. He may also choose for his friends to call him Lee. Kids are funny when they grow up and have minds of there own. We named our son, Christopher, but he likes to be called Chris. We also picked my mother's maiden name to be his middle name. It happens to be a regular name so not so funky looking as a name. James does fit nicely with the Levi. You may want to go with that. Good luck and let us know what you decide.

1 mom found this helpful
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D.T.

answers from Jackson on

COngratulations with the new little one. A friend of mine is naming hers Cruz. Levi Cruz sounds like a good one. Good luck!!

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T.C.

answers from Johnson City on

what about levi james

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L.C.

answers from Charleston on

I have a son named Levi and his middle name is Chase.

M.M.

answers from Knoxville on

I love the name Tatum btw. I have a 7 week old daughter and I wanted to name her Tatum, but my husband and daughter didn't like it.We had a terrible time agreeing on a name. We finally named her Kamarin Faith. I love Levi too. It would be hard to alter the spelling of it though. What about Levi Jordan, depending on your last name. Good luck. I was going to name mine Jordan Michael if mine had been a boy.

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S.J.

answers from Wilmington on

I don't know that there would really be any alternate spelling for Levi, however, I do like the name choice. For middle names...that's kinda tricky...maybe something like Isaac, Jonah, Joshua, Matthew...I know all sound biblical and you might not want to go that route...so you might like Peyton, Randall, or Taylor. Hope that maybe this will help, good luck!

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A.C.

answers from Charlotte on

I think that my son's name is different in that it's not uniquely spelled but there aren't many people that I know with his name (his name is Tucker). And his middle name is getting more and more popular. I think it depends on how it sounds together with the last name. As far as spelling the name Levi another way - I think it could only be spelled Levy which could be pronounced Levee. I would leave the spelling as Levi. Here are some potential middle names:

Levi Scott
Levi James
Levi Owen
Levi Seth
Levi Shane
Levi Todd

Hope that helps.

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N.L.

answers from Rocky Mount on

Hi A.! Congratulations! With today's technology, not many people nowadays will choose to not know what they are having so kudos to you for having the patience and not giving in to curiosity! I'm not sure that there are any other ways for you to spell Levi but for a middle name, what sounded good to me was Levi Aaron. Aaron is a bit down the middle...not very common but not uncommon either. I just really liked the way it sounded together.

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L.R.

answers from Memphis on

Levi Langston...what a strong name.

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R.G.

answers from Louisville on

Congratulations on the anticipated addition to your family! How exciting. And I know it's so important to give this child a name that represents all of your hopes and dreams for his future and one that will make him stand out from the crowd. No John Jones name for this kid. He needs one as special as he is.

Now, this is a really radical thought but ... does he really need a middle name? What is the purpose of the middle name? Is it a backup in case the first name doesn't work out? Is it a support mechanism/warning signal to let him know when he's in serious trouble? (Levi James you get in there and pick up your toys right this minute!)?

If you are 'taste testing' names, chances are you are not instilling ancestry into the mix by weighing and balancing fathers' names, grandfathers' or great-grandfathers' names. So what's really at the root of it? Is it just a societal habit that dictates we stick an extra name in there?

Besides, if you are not careful, middle names can lead to some really disastrous nicknames: Consider Keith Everett Gaines is a KEG; Patricia Inez Galloway is a PIG; Felicity Amanda Truman is FAT; David Ulysses Moore is DUM; Stephen Orwell Bates is an SOB; and Daniel Ira Kinsey will always be a ... well, you get the picture.

In ages past, middle names were used to ensure family names were carried on. When Miss Longworth married Mr. Bolt, she became Mrs. Bolt. She had no brothers to carry on her family name so, to secure her family's name for future generations, her firstborn child was named Samuel Longworth Bolt. Or, to secure her progenitor's name for the future, her firstborn might be named for her father as well as her husband's father and the poor first child might be saddled with Constantine Horatio Bolt. The wealthier or higher up the the social register, the more important it was to preserve one's 'bloodline' (particularly with royalty) so a child might be stuck with five or more 'middle names'. If you can, imagine a little toddler burdened with a name like, "Pallus William Alfred Marchand Marie Richmond Baltimore Franklin Walden" Ouch! One royal years ago was lashed with a name about 17 names long! Ouch! Way too many ancestors to give a nod to.

So, does your anticipated bundle of joy really need a middle name, a vestige of a long ago time? Probably not. In fact, not having a middle name can really make him stand out in a crowd. Neither my son nor daughter was given a middle name at birth. When they grew older, each had an opportunity to legally change his or her name and add a middle name. My son, for many years, tried out various names that pleased him and, as an adult, eventually settled on Logan. My daughter, who used to joke that her middle name was NMI (No Middle Initial) because it was always filled in on forms that required a middle initial. She never felt the need for a middle name and, as an adult, still has no middle name other than her maiden name as she took her husband's last name when she married.

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S.D.

answers from Nashville on

Get a baby names book. It really helped us pick out names.

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P.W.

answers from Wheeling on

Get a baby name book. Have your husband go through it and write down the names he likes. Then you go through it and write down the names you like. Whatever names you don't match on, cross out. That leaves you with the names you both like and then cut down from there.

I like Levi Riley. Of course it depends on your last name.

Good luck, my husband and I picked out our boys names when I was in labor both times. I was like you, I had a girl's name all picked out, but we had two beautiful boys who I wouldn't trade for the world.

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W.M.

answers from Nashville on

Have you tried any of the baby name books or the online sites? The online sites is how we came up with our daughter's name..we had never heard it before. Of course now we hear it all over....ugh. I would not think there are too many ways to spell Levi though. Leevi, Lehvi, Levy, Leevy might be mispronounce Leeveee. I would google "baby names" and go to those sites. One site we found had names dated back to 1900 and had 10k per gender. It was great! My ideas:

Levy....
Colton
Matthew
Jacob
Andrew
Ashton
Brandon
Braydon
Brannen
Duncan
Michael
Allen
Elijah
Gaven
Heathe
Tyler
Cole
Devin
Oliver
Parker (my son's name :o)
Jackson
Peyton
Robert
Riley
Zachary
Jon
Connor
Collin
Cole
Adam
Anthony

It also depends a lot on your last name so some of these may not 'flow' right with your last name. Have fun and congrats! W.

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G.M.

answers from Raleigh on

LEvi Samuel OR Samuel Levi
Levi Anderson
Jacob Levi
What is your maiden name? sometimes those make cool middle names.

I don't know of any alternate spellings for Levi that eodn't make it look girly

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T.C.

answers from Nashville on

These were obtained from Baby Center.com: Leif, Lev, Love, Levy, Leevi, Leigh, Lav, Lief, Lavi, Laif, Livio, Levie, Lovie, Life, Lafe, Liav, Luv, Lugh, Leaf, Livai

As for the middle name, in our family the oldest son takes Dad's first name as his middle name. For instance, My dad is James, my oldest brother is Christopher James. My husband is Michael, my son is Ethan Michael.

I also like Cruz and Tate for middle names!

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M.T.

answers from Raleigh on

I wouldn't use an alternate spelling for Levi. My name (M.) is spelled with an O like the mountain in the Bible, but people misspell it all the time with an A, leave off the H, etc., and while it's an honest mistake on their part, it's annoying to me. I love my name though. I always liked that there weren't two or three of me in the same class like Jennifer and Sarah.

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N.N.

answers from Nashville on

I have never responded to anyone and their mommy issues via Mamasource before and I am not sure if this will even help. I was thinking Levy but some people will pronouce the "y" with the "e" sound so that may be an issue. I was thinking Levy Thomas had a nice ring to it :).

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J.T.

answers from Owensboro on

Levi Gage
Levi Jett
Levi Parker
Levi Javin
Levi Tate
Levi Hunter

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C.G.

answers from Raleigh on

Levi is a great name. I considered it for our son, but we went with Owen. Please spell it just as it is. My name - C. - has multiple ways to spell it and people always spell it wrong and say it wrong - - Clara, Claree. So, annoying growing up. Keep it simple for him. Levi is a unique name spelled the traditional way.

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M.M.

answers from Jacksonville on

OMG!!! Gerrie and I had the same thought. I too had Levi James pop into my head. I do like pairing Levi with a middle name that begins with a hard consonant j,b,k,c That way you arent' trying to pronounce two vowels together. Get a baby book and see what sounds good to you.
I love the name Tatum too.

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B.K.

answers from Charlotte on

For my son's middle name we just used my husbands middle name.

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